cycling a section of the Paris-Roubaix

When any cyclist hears the word 'Roubaix' they think of the legendary Paris to Roubaix one day classic. And cobblestones. Dubbed 'the hell of the north' the race includes numerous sections over ancient cobblestones, many laid hundreds of years ago. 
Renowned as one of cycling's oldest races, the cobblestone sections have lead to the development of innovative tyres, frames and wheels to combat the 'Sunday from hell.' Don't you love a race with such beguiling names?
Today I rode perhaps the most infamous of the cobbled sections - a 2.4 km straight 'road' through a forest just north of the French town of Valenciennes, labelled the Tranchee d'Arenberg. The trench of Arenberg.
I didn't actually plan to ride it. I was following a Google map between Valenciennes and Roubaix. As Cathie and I cycled into a forest, a man walking his dog, noticed our panniers and assumed correctly that we were long-distance cyclists and foreigners. He excitedly called out 'Paris-Roubaix' and pointed ahead.
Once my front tyre hit the cobblestones, it didn't take me long to work out what he meant. Ouch! Supposedly the cyclists in the one-day classic hurtle through here at speeds over 30 kph. 
I cycled a few metres at 10 kph and gave up, veering off the cobbles onto a dirt section, which during the race is filled with fans and therefore not an option for the harried racers.
The cobbles in this section were first laid during the time of Napoleon Bonaparte. 
The 'trench' has become the symbol of the race. It inspires such devotion that fans regularly steal a cobblestone, which only makes the surface more dangerous. The Council spend a fortune replacing missing cobbles.
The trench has also caused a few broken legs among the diehard racers, including the leader of the peloton in 2001, Philippe Gaumont and Johan Museeuw in 1998 who almost lost his leg to gangrene.
Me? I warily crept back onto the cobbles to have my photo taken before bailing at the first opportunity. Madness.